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After I had completed the stitching and the cording of this small boutis project, (see previous post), I was looking for a quick way to finish it. By setting it into a linen surround, lightened up with some white cotton, my hope was that the piece could stand on it's own. The end result was a floppy, uninspiring octagonal shape that reminded me of a crokinole board. Not quite what I had in mind!

Removing the boutis from the linen and finding a more appropriate setting was one consideration.
And, because of the strong tradition of hand work associated with boutis, I considered hand quilting the linen/cotton surround. As much as I enjoy hand quilting, I know that the project would languish in a cupboard for many years until the hand quilting priority list could accommodate this table topper. Therefore, the only legitimate solution I could sensibly consider was to machine quilt.

In France, just as in North America, the debate between traditional methods versus contemporary methods…

Back in the summer of 2012 in Montpellier, in the south of France, it was my good fortune to participate in a series of classes in boutis with Madame Francine Born. (See my post of Sept. 9, 2012 "Backlit Boutis").

Below is one of her designs; the piece that we worked on in that course. It is a fairly traditional design and uses a variety of traditional boutis stitches. Held up against the light, it's easy to see how light and shadow are integral to this particular style of needlework. In order to keep that translucent quality in the finished product, the finished boutis must be set into the surrounding fabric in a way that keeps both front and back of the boutis uncovered. Linen is a natural paring with the white boutis, so in keeping to a more traditional look, I set my finished boutis piece into a linen and white cotton surround. At the time, I was uncertain as to how I wanted to continue from there, so it got packed away.